The conversation went on a little bit further. They talked about some random topics while having breakfast, keeping the mood light and polite.
Finally, after taking Lortell's polite refusal for more time, Mourya and his subordinates left the palace without pressuring her too much.
Lortell sighed heavily. She felt a huge sense of relief seeing them finally leave, but at the same time, she also felt completely exhausted.
Her shoulders were slumpy, as if she was half asleep. She turned around and started walking towards her bedroom.
She walked in the hallway and then upstairs. At the same time, Meldia followed Lortell quietly. But when Lortell was about to enter her bedroom, Meldia finally asked.
"Are you going to sleep again?" she asked gently, her voice soft and respectful.
"Yes. The start of this morning was pretty bad. I'll sleep again and restart my morning!" Lortell replied before closing the door and jumping onto the bed to sleep once again.
***
Soon, the morning light turned quite bright. The sun shone with its yellow, piercing light. It was already afternoon.
Lortell's eyes opened, and she sat up, stretching her limbs and yawning hard. "Now that's a good way to wake up," she muttered to herself, feeling truly rested.
She walked out of the bed, brushed her teeth, had a bath with some skincare routine, and Tadaa! She was all ready and feeling fresh.
Without needing to ask anyone anything, she already knew where Esdeath was. Lortell quietly walked downstairs, towards the kitchen, and just like she had expected, Esdeath was standing there.
She had a cup of tea on a plate and was just about to come to Lortell herself, but Lortell came to her instead.
"Esdeath, my love~" Lortell said happily, her voice full of warmth. She extended both of her hands and hugged Esdeath tight, giving her a quick kiss on the lips.
Esdeath raised her hand up in the middle of being hugged, the one holding the tea plate, to secure it from falling down.
"You're in a good mood today. I was just coming to give you this cup of tea!" Esdeath replied with a small blush on her cheeks.
Lortell didn't say anything at first. She took the cup of tea from the plate, gulped it all in one go, and then put the empty cup back on the plate.
"Indeed, I'm feeling so refreshed. It's like we just married yesterday!" Lortell replied with a chuckle, her eyes sparkling with joy.
"Maybe we can marry a few more times just for fun!" Esdeath replied, adding to the humor, her smile matching Lortell's.
"We can, if you want to," Lortell replied, half joking, half serious, her gaze full of love.
"Let's go, have a lunch!" Lortell added, turning around. "Meldia, present the lunch!" she shouted, her voice echoing through the palace.
Soon enough, Meldia sent a few maids to present the lunch to Lortell and even sent Selene to join them.
Without further ado, Esdeath, Lortell, and Selene had their lunch. Lortell was also feeling quite nostalgic after coming back to her palace after a few months. She kind of also missed her father; she had dinners with him several times whenever he was here.
After the lunch, Selene went outside to play around. Esdeath had acknowledged that she had grown up enough to roam outside on her own. Recently, she had also started asking fewer questions and began finding answers on her own.
As for Lortell and Esdeath, they arrived back at their new bedroom—I mean, new for Esdeath.
They sat on the bed cross-legged, looking at each other in the eyes. Esdeath clearly got the idea that Lortell was finally ready to hear what secret she wanted to expose.
"Well, it's both quite easy and complicated to understand," Esdeath said, scratching the back of her head, a little nervous.
"Just tell me. It's up to me if I understand it clearly or not!" Lortell said casually, her voice calm and encouraging.
Esdeath rolled her eyes, looking right and left, and then said, "Let me make it easier. You know I said that Maruti is blessed by the goddess Seraphine and gets visions about the future?" she asked.
Lortell nodded. "Yes," she replied.
"So, that was a lie. It's actually me who knows the future!" Esdeath answered, as calmly as she could.
Surprisingly, Lortell didn't look surprised. Her emotions were composed, her expression thoughtful.
"But how? And what kind of future?" she asked back calmly.
"A constellation. I'm under a contract with a constellation. Well, not me necessarily, a constellation. More accurately, a half-constellation. She has shown me quite many visions about the future and provided some boosts to help me grow stronger quickly!" Esdeath explained, her words tumbling out.
"A constellation, huh? That kinda explains your unnatural growth!" Lortell sighed. "But even constellations choose people with talent. So, you are truly extraordinary!" She praised Esdeath at the same time, a proud smile on her face.
"But what kind of visions?" Lortell added, her focus sharp.
"About the future, where the Demon King will soon revive from its seal and turn the world into chaos. Since my constellation's goal is also to eliminate the Demon King, she has given me the goal to kill the Demon King while it's still in its seal!" Esdeath explained in short, her voice serious.
Lortell didn't say anything at first. She rubbed her chin, thinking quietly, her brow furrowed in concentration.
"That's quite a difficult goal. No, one of the most difficult goals to achieve. Are you sure the future she showed you was correct?" Lortell asked, her voice low and serious.
Esdeath nodded. "Most likely, yes. That is why if we want to have a peaceful life ahead, we must kill the Demon King while we have the chance!" she added, her eyes pleading for Lortell to understand.
"So that is why you were going to the demon realm?" Lortell asked suspiciously.
But Esdeath immediately shook her head. "Of course not. I'm not even close to being ready. It was just as I said, to grow stronger and have more experience," she answered, trying to sound convincing.
Lortell nodded in understanding. "Hmm... So what is your impression on your constellation? Is he or she bad or good?"
Esdeath paused for a second and then said, "I don't know!"
She really wanted to say that she didn't like her constellation, but who knows, Jeanne might be watching them right at the moment.
Lortell sighed once. "Constellation, upcoming doomsday, defeat the Demon King... No wonder you were in your own world most of the time. I assume your friend Maruti knows about it as well?" she asked.
"Yes!" Esdeath answered.
"But still, you could've told me about it. Were you afraid that I wouldn't believe you, or did your constellation not agree for you to talk about it?" Lortell said, her voice soft, not accusatory.
"Kind of both, I guess!" Esdeath replied with a dry chuckle, feeling a weight lift off her shoulders.
"Well, no worries now. You have my full support. If an age of chaos is really coming, then it doesn't matter if your constellation is good or not, we will have to fight," Lortell exclaimed, her tone a bit motivated and full of determination.
"You're right. There's no other way!" Esdeath added, feeling a surge of hope.
"By the way, don't worry too much. If you can't, I'll defeat the Demon King for you!" Lortell patted Esdeath's back, motivating her gently with a loving smile.
"Now, if your questions are done, then I would like you to invite Maruti and Kailith for dinner!" Esdeath said, changing the subject.
"Those two? Why?" Lortell asked, feeling confused for the first time that day.
"Because we are going to hell," Esdeath answered out of nowhere.
"Hell?!" Lortell repeated, her voice high-pitched. For the first time, she looked a little surprised. She had prepared herself for any kind of secret Esdeath would reveal, but she wasn't prepared for this.
"Yes. Before defeating the Demon King, we will defeat Kirmada, one of the four lords of hell," she said solemnly, her voice serious and heavy.
"We are not the only ones. Queen Maddie and her personal guard, Scarlet, will also come, along with the sentient machine, M.A.L.I.C.E.," Esdeath added, listing the names carefully.
"Wait... what? M.A.L.I.C.E.? Why would that thing have anything to do with Kirmada? ... wait, when did you two meet?" Lortell felt even more surprised, feeling like the secret Esdeath had just said was most likely true.
"I told you, I know the future. That's why I know what that guy wants, and it can be fulfilled in hell. Same goes for Queen Maddie as well!" Esdeath explained, trying to make it sound simple.
"So back to the topic. It'll be me, you, Selene, Maruti, Kailith, Maddie, and M.A.L.I.C.E.," Esdeath said, counting them off.
"But the problem is, I never put my whole faith in outsiders. So other than you, none of us (Esdeath, Maruti, Selene, and Kailith) are prepared!" Esdeath said with a deep sigh, the weight of the situation clear on her face.
"Not only that, we must also find training for others as well, those who will stay behind. So that by the time we come back, they should be much stronger than before. We need everyone's help in the future!" Esdeath explained, her voice determined.
"That's why we should discuss it in today's dinner!" Esdeath finally completed her point, looking at Lortell with hopeful eyes.
"You're right. I will personally write the letter to invite them!" Lortell agreed immediately, her mind already made up.
After the conversation's end, they both awkwardly looked at each other, not knowing what to say anymore.
"She said Maddie and M.A.L.I.C.E. are going to hell for their own reasons, but what's Esdeath's reason for going to hell?" Lortell thought to herself, a curious feeling stirring inside her.
But this time, she didn't suspect Esdeath like last time because this time the situation felt different, more like Esdeath just didn't want to reveal it for now.
Lortell also didn't pry further and left it to Esdeath's choice. She wasn't going to repeat the same thing she did last time.
She also felt quite guilty for all the things she had done. "In the end, it's just like I had expected. Esdeath was in quite a bigger mess and was always thinking about our future," she thought to herself, her heart aching with a mix of guilt and admiration.
She then gently extended her hand and grabbed Esdeath's palm lightly. "Once again, I'm truly sorry. I couldn't understand the situation you were in!" she said, her voice soft and sincere.
"There's no need. If I was in your position, I would have had my own suspicions as well," Esdeath replied gently with a faint smile, her eyes full of understanding.
In the heat of the moment, Lortell leaned in a little closer. As always, Esdeath didn't reject her advances at all.
With a gentle push, Lortell pushed Esdeath down on the bed, leaning over her. It was obvious what she was going to do.
But then—SWAP!...
Esdeath flipped, switching the position by pinning Lortell down beneath her.
Lortell's eyes were slightly widened, looking at Esdeath with a surprised expression.
"No, not today!" Esdeath said with a confident smirk.
"I've been noticing a lot, you know. It's always you taking all the tension, showing your dominant and manly side, having all the external pressure on yourself to give me an easy time to do anything!" Esdeath said, her voice a mix of playful and serious.
She gently unwrapped the top knot of her cloth and slowly pulled them loose.
"Even if once in a while, you should show your feminine side as well. You too are a woman, after all," Esdeath said in a provocative voice, sitting on Lortell's belly.
Hearing this, Lortell's cheeks slightly blushed red. She looked away, pulling the back of her hand up to her mouth.
"Aren't you being quite manly today?"